The 2023 Porsche 911 GT3 RS Is 518-HP Motorsport Car You Can Drive Down Main Street

Porsche has revealed the 911 GT3 RS for 2023 at Monterey Car Week, and given those of us who can’t be there a bank of glorious high-definition images that show off the details far better than the low-res versions leaked earlier this week.

The most extreme naturally aspirated production 911 yet builds on the base of the already incredible 992-generation GT3, which switched to double-wishbone front suspension to help it make a giant leap forward. But the RS earns its additional letters by going even further, replacing the base GT3’s 502 hp (510 PS), 347 lb-ft (470 Nm) 4.0-liter flat six with a 518 hp (525 PS) version of the same featuring hotter cams.

Sadly, the RS doesn’t get the GT3’s choice of a six-speed manual transmission or seven-speed PDK, coming only with the dual-clutch ‘box, and the new aero kit drops the top speed from 198 mph (319 km/h) to 184 mph (296 km/h). But on the plus side the extra power cuts 0.2 seconds from the PDK-equipped GT3’s 3.2-second 0-60 mph (97 km/h) sprint.

It’s not in a straight line, but around corners where the RS’s benefits will really shine, through. And that’s in large part down to an incredible armoury of aerodynamic devices fitted to almost every panel. Starting at the now redundant frunk, which gets a pair of L-shaped vents that exhale air drawn in through the front bumper, we can then see the familiar saw-tooth vents that allow air to exit from the front wheelhousings. There are small winglets ahead of the front wheels, and an even bigger pair of vertical fins behind them which partially disguise the section of front fender that is rolled inwards, just like on the RS’s Cayman GT4 RS little brother.

Extended sill panels look after air running along the lower bodywork, and there are additional aero gadgets beneath the floor, while a pair of fins running either side of the roof help guide air heading over the top. But it’s at the back where things get really nuts. The RS’s most obvious feature, besides the huge “GT3 RS” graphics running along doors, is a gigantic two-deck rear spoiler whose upper tier can be electrically adjusted in angle like an F1 DRS drag-reduction device via a button on the steering wheel depending on whether the driver needs more or less downforce.

The new wing towers above a small ducktail spoiler built into the rear bodywork, and a diffusers slung below the two central exhaust pipes completes the aero suite. Porsche says the RS can create a total of 902 lbs (409 kg) of downforce at 124 mph (200 km/h), twice that of its predecessor, and three times that of the GT3. Increase the pace to 177 mph (285 km/h) and the RS generates an unholy 1,895 lbs (860 kg) of downward squish.

Open the lightweight carbon-fiber doors, which feature a pronounced crease that carries on the front fender line, and you’re met with a pair of carbon bucket seats and (in most markets) a roll cage that come with the now-standard Club Sport package. Like GT3s equipped with the PDK gearbox, but unlike lesser PDK 911s, the shift lever is an actual lever, not just a little toggle on the console. But not even the GT3 features four different rotary drive mode selectors on the steering wheel, as the RS does, allowing the driver to individually control features like the damping and rear differential.

That’s not the end of the RS-fest, however. Center-lock wheels measuring 20-inches at the front and 21-inches at the back are wrapped in Michelin rubber that’s wider than the base GT3’s. The front tire step up from a 255-section to a 275-section, and the ordinarily 315 mm rears grow to 335 mm wide, while the brakes (PCCB carbon ceramic rotors are optional) have also grown. Despite the extra hardware Porsche has managed to keep the weight down to 3,268 lbs (1,450 kg), although that is 44 lbs (20 kg) heavier than the old 991.2 GT3 RS and 33 lbs (15 kg) up on the non-RS GT3.

We’ve no doubt that the RS will shrug off that weight advantage on the track however. And for drivers who want the best of the best, and the lightest possible RS, there’s always the Weissach package. Ticking that box adds a carbon fiber front lid and roof, and swaps the regular steel roll cage and anti-roll bars and some suspension components for carbon versions, adds forged magnesium wheels that save 17.6 lbs (8 kg). It also introduces motorsport-derived magnet technology to the PDK shift paddles for a crisper shift action that’s accompanied by a defined click.

The new 911 GT3 RS is available for order now and starts at €229,517 in Germany and $223,800 plus destination in the U.S. North American deliveries are scheduled to begin in spring 2023.